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Diana
Build Guide by koridjinn

This build has been archived and is for historical display only.

PLEASE NOTE: This build has been archived by the author. They are no longer supporting nor updating this build and it may have become outdated. As such, voting and commenting have been disabled and it no longer appears in regular search results.

Not Updated For Current Season

This guide has not yet been updated for the current season. Please keep this in mind while reading. You can see the most recently updated guides on the browse guides page.

Introduction

Hello, and welcome to my Jungle Diana guide. I have played Diana ever since she was released in Season 2. I have tried many different ways to build her, play her and positions to put her in.

The idea of Jungle Diana was introduced as soon as she was released. She was quickly discovered to be an amazing jungler with her speed, damage and strong ganks once she hits level 6. Her ability to deal "tons of damage" without many items makes her extremely viable, as jungling provides very little gold income. She can fill in many different positions to fit the needs of her team, whether it be an AP Assassin or a Tanky Bruiser who focuses on dealing as much AoE in a team fight possible.

With the arrival of Season 3, Diana is quickly proving herself to be just as viable in the jungle as she was in Season 2. She still has one of the fastest clear speeds in League of Legends, able to snowball her way through camps. While most junglers lament in the fact that they cannot pull off early, game-dictating ganks, Diana players can rejoice in this, taking their time to farm up to level 6 and thus being able to keep up with the God Junglers.

I love Diana. She is an incredibly fun champion to play, and her versatility makes her incredibly strong. In this guide, I'll show some ways to play her in the jungle, some viable builds and well, how to dominate the game with her.

A Word on Diana Nerfs + Patch Notes

I'm aware that Diana has been nerfed in the Vi patch. Her base damages were lowered and it has made her slightly more dependent on items than she once did. Currently, in this patch, the best way to deal with her jungling is to rush a Rabadon's Deathcap to make up for her weaker early game. In terms of being a tanky bruiser, you will want to stack GP10 items and focus on farming. Diana's high damage returns at about level 9, when her Crescent Strike should be fully maxed. Hopefully your team will understand this, and wait out with you!

Pros and Cons

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PROS

+ Very high base damage+ Her clear speed is fast+ Provides a lot of utlity to her team+ Can snowball out of control+ Versatile in terms of build options+ WAS BORN WITH A THOUSAND SWAG CHROMOSOMES

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CONS

- Very squishy early game- No escape mechanism in her kit- Ganks are terrible before level 6- VERY blue buff reliant- Cannot duel without double buffs- Has only one form of CC, which requires melee range

Build Explanations

The Carry:

This build is aimed at giving Diana as much damage as possible, while still being gold efficient. Stacking magic penetration early game allows you to do near true damage early game.

When to pick this build?
- When you have a tank in your team
- Your mid-laner is not an AP carry
- When your AP carry is not doing very good
- The enemy team lacks CC

The Offtank:

Thanks to Diana's naturally high damage output, she can use her gold on utility items rather than damage items. With enough defensive stats, Diana can initiate a fight on an enemy carry that is out of place. This build is focused on items that provide defense and offense.

When to pick this build?
- When your team has a lot of AP already
- When you are being constantly focused down
- When your team needs auras/utlity

Summoner Spells

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This is essential to take when jungling as Diana. Smite secures buffs, allow counter-jungling, secures objectives and speeds up your jungling by a large margin. Always take Smite when jungling!

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For both offensive and defensive purposes. Since Diana has no escape ability, you will need either this or Ghost to get out of harm's way. I prefer Flash simply because it's a safer choice, and much easier to use. However, if you don't like this spell then take...

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I find this to be a very good spell for pre-6 ganks. The movement speed lets you get into melee range quickly. It also has a lower cooldown than Flash. However, if you are CC'd it will be more difficult to escape with this spell.

Greater Seal of Armor: My preferred set of seals. Armor seals takes off the damage from jungle monsters. If you happen to run into the enemy jungler and they deal physical damage (e.g. Shyvana), you will be more likely to survive.

Greater Glyph of Scaling Magic Resist: Scaling magic resist glyphs provide more magic resist in later levels than flat ones do. Your ganks will being around level 6. By then, the enemy AP carry should have attained their ultimates, making them stronger.

Runes

Greater Quintessence of Movement Speed3

Greater Quintessence of Ability Power3

Greater Quintessence of Health3

Greater Quintessence of Movement Speed: I like these on any jungler. With Diana, movement speed gives her a great advantage when ganking due to her melee nature. Movement speed quints also give you map mobility, so you can go from top lane to bottom before things go wary.

I find that these masteries work better on Diana because they can conform with her situation. Taking 21 in Offense works better in offensive play and a 'carry' position. However, Diana cannot always walk the path of an AP carry.
Spending the rest of my remaining points on Defense either doesn't allow access to Veteran's Scars , Summoner's Resolve or good usage of the magic resist and armor masteries.
Then there's nothing left in Utility. I rely on Expanded Mind to solve my mana problems in mid-game until I find a chance to buy a mana item. The Utility tree also provides Runic Affinity , which is a very useful mastery for junglers.
9/12/9, although not making full use of any tree, allows access to every tree. Ever since trying these unique masteries, I have never used anything else on jungle Diana.

Spoiler: Click to view

Alternative

Summoner's Resolve : A point in this gives 10 bonus gold whenever you use Smite. Durability : Health per level. Tough Skin : Reduces minion damage, as you will be jungling. Hardiness : The extra armor takes the edge of physical attacks from jungle monsters. Bladed Armor : Returns damage to minions and monsters when they hit you. Unyielding : You'll take less damage from enemy champions in general. Veteran's Scars : A really good mastery. The extra 30 health in the beginning of the game makes you less squishy looking. Tenacious : Seeing as Diana has no escape ability, Tenacity is very helpful when playing against heavy CC teams. Juggernaut : More health means you can soak up more damage. Honor Guard : Damage reduction from all sources.

Diana's Abilities

Moonsilver Blade: This is Diana's Passive. Diana has 20% increased attack speed. Every third strike cleaves nearby enemies in an arc for additional magic damage. This passive is amazing for jungling. Every third auto-attack, Diana will deal AoE magic damage to all enemies in an arc. Attack speed synchronizes very well with her passive.

+ An awesome passive to abuse when jungling+ Actually has higher base damage/AP ratio than Lunar Rush+ The extra damage works on turrets and enemies next to it

Crescent Strike (Q): Diana swings her blade to unleash a bolt of lunar energy that deals damage in an arc before exploding. Enemies hit are afflicted by Moonlight, revealing them for 3 seconds. Diana's main damage ability. It is an arc'd skill-shot that explodes for AoE damage at the end. At max rank, it makes for a very powerful poke and chunks the health off of enemies. Crescent Strike has an important interaction with her ultimate.

+ You can use this spell to check bushes+ You will usually want to aim slightly behind an enemy for it land+ Chaining Crescent Strike with Lunar Rush is very important. Make sure that your enemy is marked with Moonlight before using your ultimate, or it won't reset.

Pale Cascade (W): Diana creates three orbiting spheres that detonate on contact with enemies to deal damage in an area. She also gains a temporary shield that absorbs damage. This shield is refreshed if her third sphere detonates. Lasts 4 seconds. An offensive shield, of all things. The three circling orbs also deal AoE magic damage.

+ Move yourself closer to the jungler monsters to detonate each orb, as Diana's auto-attack range and orb range is not the same.+ Casting Pale Cascade does not stop movement+ If there are no minions around, try activating Pale Cascade before you Lunar Rush, so you can guarantee damage on the enemy champion.

Moonfall (E): Diana draws in and slows all nearby enemies for 2 seconds. This is almost exactly like Orianna's ultimate commmand:shockwave, except it has a smaller range and it slows instead of stunning the enemies. You must to be in melee range in order to draw in an enemy champion.

+ Timing is very important when it comes to this skill, as it has a long cooldown.+ Try not to waste Moonfall on one champion in a teamfight+ Use this spell when your enemies actually try to run away. However, you may let your finger slip in reflex!+ Combined with Randuin's Omen, this can make a powerful CC lockdown against the enemy team.

Lunar Rush (R): Diana teleports to an enemy and deals magic damage. The cooldown is refreshed when Diana teleports to an enemy afflicted by Moonlight. Diana makes up for her lack of CC with a powerful, long-range gap closer that also deals damage. Chaining this spell with Crescent Strike can give you unlimited numbers of uses on Lunar Rush. Once Diana has got herself on her target, it is extremely difficult of her enemy to peel her off.

+ Make sure to land your Crescent Strike before using Lunar Rush.+ In team-fights, it is ill-advised to Lunar Rush onto someone who is not marked with Moonlight. You will need the damage and mobility from your ultimate later.+ Crescent Strike into a monster camp, then Lunar Rush onto them can provide a safe escape mechanism.+ Juke your enemies by running into a bush, then Lunar Rush to the champion furtherest back (when running from a group) or right into your enemy, as it puts you behind them.+ Lunar Rush can go through walls if an enemy is within sight.

Skill Sequence

Ability Sequence

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

>> >> >>

+Level 1: You will want to put your skill point in Pale Cascade. Not only does it shield you, but it also provides sufficient damage against jungle monsters.

+After level 4: You should focus on maxing your Q, Crescent Strike as soon as possible, as it is your main source of damage. Afterwards, Pale Cascade should be maxed out for it's damage and shield. Since Moonfall is a utility ability, you can leave it to be maxed last. As usual, you will want to put points in Lunar Rush whenever possible.

ITEMS: Early Game

With the arrival of Season 3, the best starting item to take on junglers is the Hunter's Machete.
The Machete itself does not provide any stats, but it allows you to deal 10% more damage to neutral monsters, and basic attacks deal 10 true damage. The rest of your 175 gold will be spent of 5 health potions, as Diana has no sustain ability in her kit. Five potions will give you enough sustain for your first jungle clear, up to level 4.

By the time you make your first recall, you should have enough gold for Boots of Speed. Boots give you movement speed, and allow you to make some ganks and travel between camps faster. The Crystalline Flask is an excellent item choice on Diana, as it refills both health and mana pools when blue buff runs out.
Any extra gold should be spent on a Faerie Charm for mana regeneration. It will be built into the Spirit Stone with Hunter's Machete.

Feel another power spike! This item is amazing for it's huge dose of AP, the armor and it's active, which makes your invulnerable for 2 seconds. This almost 'makes up' for your glass-cannoness as you can dive into a fight with your team, eliminate the enemy carry and then turn yourself golden so you can't be focused down. Negatron Cloak -> Abyssal Scepter

A core item on Diana, no matter what. The negating-magic-resist aura means more damage when you are shoulder to shoulder with the enemy. The magic resist stats give you some survivability against enemy mages who need to be taken down.

I love this item for it's utility and it's synergy with Moonfall and well, running away. You should aim to complete this after Abyssal Scepter for it's defensive stats. Typically, you will want Warden's Mail first for the attack-speed-reduction passive and the armor. Giant's Belt will be a good option if the enemy is two AP casters, or their AP carry needs to be shut-down. In a team-fight you'll want to use the active on the AD carry. Get the AD bruiser if you're lucky. This will reduce the damage they'll deal overall. kage's lucky pick -> Twin Shadows

When running this build, you'll definitely want to pick up a Lucky Pick early for the passive gold income. Later in the game, when team-fights start, you'll want to upgrade it into Twin Shadows. This little item gives both a small amount of ability power, magic resist and a movement speed multiplier - all are things that benefit Diana. Use this to scout objectives, check bushes, catch up to fleeing/chasing enemies and initiate a fight.

Sixth Item

An extremely strong item for countering ADC's or anyone else who has fast attack speed. The extra mana it provides is very rewarding. You'll definitely want to take this item if no one else on your team will be. Build this before Randuin's Omen seeing as the extra mana is very good for mid game.

The more offensive version of Frozen Heart. While the proc is attack damage based, the slow is very useful when weaving in autoattacks between spells. If you manage to combo Moonsilver Blade with the icy field, you'll be dealing a lot of AoE damage form one auto-attack.

Diana enjoys attack-speed. If you happen to be facing someone who does sustained magic damage such as Cassiopeia, Singed or Teemo, this will increase your magic resist on hit. You might also want this to put pressure on turrets against a double AP composition.

For an all-round boost in stats, take this. It's an ideal item to take late game, when respawn timers are long, or if you're being focused really hard.

shurelya's reverie

It gives health, sustain and the passive makes for a good initiate, ganking tool or escape mechanism. Buy philosopher's stone early for the GP10. You should aim to build this mid-late game, so you can take full effect of the gold-generation passive.

shurelya's reverie

If you are doing very well, grabbing a Cap greatly increases your damage output. It's a nice round-off to the end of a build.

Jungle Path

WOLVES: They will spawn at 1:40. You want to stand at the back of the camp. Use Pale Cascade to shield the damage. Aim at the largest wolf. Use a pot when the the largest wolf dies. Move to...

BLUE GOLEM: Otherwise known as Blue Buff. Hit the golem once and pull it out. Turn on Pale Cascade and allow all three orbs to hit it. You may need to use 1-2 potions here. Smite the golem when it is low enough. You'll hit level 2. Put a point in Crescent Strike. Go to...

WRAITHS: Aim Crescent Strike so the end hits all of the wraiths. Use Pale Cascade when they begin to crowd around you. Focus the largest wraith. Use a potion here or use it at...

WOLVES (again): By the time you finish wraiths, they should have respawned. Use both abilities to clear the camp. At level 3, put another point in Pale Cascade. When you finish them, you should have one health pot left for...

RED LIZARD: Also known as red buff. Pull the lizard out and try to land Crescent Strike on all the monsters. Use your last health potion, and Smite the large lizard. For level 4 head to...

WRAITHS: Again. As soon as you kill everything in the camp, you will hit level 4. Put your skill point in Moonfall.

IF YOU HAVE OVER 50% HEALTH LEFT:

If a lane is pushed enough to allow you to pull off an easy gank, do it. If not, you can go to the Small Golems and jungle your way to level 6.

IF YOU HAVE LESS THAN 50% HEALTH LEFT:

This is an opportunity to recall and buy some items.

Knowing when each camp/objective spawns can prepare your team to take them.

Initial Spawn: 1:44

Respawn Time: 1 minutes

Inital Spawn: 1:44

Respawn Time: 50 seconds

Initial Spawn: 1:55

Respawn Time: 5 minutes

Initial Spawn: 1:55

Respawn Time: 5 minutes

Initial Spawn: 2:30

Respawn Time: 6 minutes

Initial Spawn: 15:00

Respawn Time: 7 minutes

Ganking

Diana is a predominantly ganking jungler, however, she will most likely be farming as hard as possible in the jungle till she hits level 6. Once she unlocks her ultimate, her ganks become extremely powerful with her gap closer and hard CC.
It is not impossible to gank before level 6, depending on your team composition...

MID LANE

Description: The home of AP carries. Champions who lane here usually have high burst and deal magic damage.

Ganking Pre-6:

There are some champions who naturally push their lanes with AoE abilities, such as Morgana or Ziggs. If you find your mid laner farming at their turret, this makes an extremely good opporunity for you to gank.

If your mid-laner has their own form of hard CC, such as Ahri's Charm or Lux's Light Binding, you will have little problem ganking the lane. Wait for your AP carry to land their CC, then run straight in.

Ganking After 6:

By the time you have hit level 6 yourself, it is most likely your mid-laner has as well, thanks to solo lane experience. Most AP carries have high damage ultimates, or a skill that enables them mobility. With both your ultimates combined, there is little chance of the enemy escaping.

Take note of whether or not the enemy AP carry has their CC or ultimate on cooldown. You will have the upperhand if they have already blown their skills in a one-on-one.

TOP LANE

Description: Here you will find bruisers and tanks. Top lane is usually a farm lane. If the lane is ignored, some champions can farm themselves to 2-3 levels ahead of everyone else.

Ganking Pre-6:

Extremely risky to gank, simply because of most top-laner's power early game.

Be wary of your own top laner's health bar and condition in comparison to the enemy.

Prepare to be in long-ish engages with the enemy, as some champions can duel 1 vs 2.

Ganking After-6:

If the enemy is at over 50% health, don't try stick around for a long engage. Dealing heavy burst damage with Q and R, then backing off is much safer.

If the enemy is below 50% health, you should have little problem bursting the enemy down, seeing as most top-laners don't build magic resist early.

BOT LANE

Description: Bottom is where the AD Carry and Support lay. The AD carry will most likely focus on farming until the Support opens up an opportunity to lock down and kill the enemy. Most AD carries and their supports are extremely squishy.

Ganking Pre-6:

There are some AD carries/supports who have absolutely no mobility, allowing an easy loop/bush gank.

Your AD carry and Support should initiate the fight and have the enemy's attention before you enter the picture. This way, the enemy won't have enough time to react.

Lanes that do not favour Diana are lanes with a mobile AD carry such as Vayne and a Support who can peel, like Nami with her Aqua Prison. However, most mobility abilities/peel abilities have long cooldowns, and can be baited quite easily.

Lanes with a tanky support who also has hard CC such as Alistar and Leona should be approached with caution, as a simple combo can turn a gank into kills for the enemy carry.

Ganking After-6:

Similar to how you would gank before level 6, having the enemy engaged in battle before you join in is the best way to enter.

It is very important to land Crescent Strike to chain your Lunar Rush. If you can refresh your ultimate, you will be able to catch back up to the enemy once they blow their escape.

As soon as your initiator takes the lead, follow him into battle. You will want to land your Crescent Strike on the highest priority target, then follow up with Lunar Rush. From then on, you can continue to cut them to pieces.

AS THE TANKY DPS

Diana excels at a quick initiates on out-of-place carries, but she can also dive straight into battle, provided she has the right team-mates.

Do keep in mind that you will be focused if you are the first one into battle. Use your Randuin's Omen when surrounded by the AD Carry and AD Bruiser. This adds to the slow from your Moonfall.

Warding

sight ward

Map vision is a powerful tool in League of Legends. Vision allows your team to set up ganks, escape from them and know what the enemy team is doing. In higher level play, map vision and sight is crucial at every stage of the game.

Sightstones

The Sightstone is a new item in Season 3. For 700 gold, you get an item which starts with four wards. You can place down two wards at once, consuming a ward from the Sightstone.
If you upgrade it into a Ruby Sightstone ( Sightstone + Ruby Crystal) you'll start with 5 charges, and you'll be allowed to place down 3 at once.
This is a wonderful little item. Instead of always having to buy wards for 75 gold each, you can have infinite wards all through the game as long as you have the item with you.
If you plan on buying a Sightstone, you will want to buy it as soon as possible and ward the two rivers. This gives general vision of the map. It's also a great item to carry around if you need to check bushes.

Oracle's Elixir

Enemy team warding everywhere? Can't gank because bot lane has full vision of everything? For 400 gold, grab and Oracle's Elixir. Consume it, and you'll be able to clear wards.
Every team needs an Oracle's Elixir. As the jungler, you'll be the best member to buy it, seeing as you will be roaming more than the laners will be.
Oracle's is also good for shutting down stealthed champions such as:

Keep in mind that others can see if you have an Oracle's Elixir and will try to shut you down if you are actively clearing their wards. However, the Elixir only lasts for 5 minutes, so try switching it between you and the support.

Closing Statement

I hope my readers have enjoyed what I've written. I had a lot of fun writing this guide, and assessing it over. I plan on playing some ranked in 2013, and hopefully I will be able to play Jungle Diana and test this build for ranked.
If you've got some idea and tips on how I can improve this guide, please leave a comment!

Until next time,
KoriDjinn aka Cloverdose

Credits

>> Thank you to LaCorpse for providing the fractals in my Introduction image

>> Thanks to jhoijhoi for the guide template, which you can find here.

>> Credits to ShadowLight for the switching places combo.

>> GisAlmeiga for her Eclipse Diana image which was used in my banners

League of Legends is a team based, real time strategy game set in a mythical world of swords & magic where epic battles decide the fate of mystical nations. Game players take on the role of a Summoner who conjures and controls champions to fight for them at the Institute of War. During game play champions gain experience and items to enhance their skills and abilities. How players develop and play their champions can be the difference between a crushing defeat or a glorious victory!